Wisconsin Question 2, African-American Male Suffrage Amendment (April 1847)
| Wisconsin Question 2 | |
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| Election date |
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| Topic Race and ethnicity issues and Race and suffrage |
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| Status |
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| Type Constitutional convention referral |
Origin |
Wisconsin Question 2 was on the ballot as a constitutional convention referral in Wisconsin on April 5, 1847. It was defeated.
A "yes" vote supported granting all male citizens of African descent the right to vote and hold elected office. |
A "no" vote opposed granting all male citizens of African descent the right to vote and hold elected office. |
Election results
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Wisconsin Question 2 |
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| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
| Yes | 7,664 | 34.40% | ||
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14,615 | 65.60% | ||
Aftermath
Wisconsin voters decided on four measures related to African American male suffrage in 1847, 1849, 1857, and 1865. The 1849 measure was approved but did not take effect because a majority of voters voting at the election did not approve it, while the other three were defeated.
The election results of the 1849 measure were challenged in Gillespie v. Palmer (1866). Ezekiel Gillespie, one of the leaders of the Black community in Milwaukee, tried to register to vote for the 1865 general election but was denied by election inspectors. The case was taken up by the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which ruled in favor of Gillespie finding that voters had given the right to vote to African Americans at the 1849 election. The Court ruled the results from the 1857 and 1865 election were moot and said:[1][2]
| “ | To declare a measure or law adopted or defeated – not by the number of votes cast directly for or against it, but by the number cast for and against some other measure, or for the candidates for some office or offices not connected with the measure itself, would not only be out of the ordinary course of legislation, but, so far as we know, a thing unknown in the history of constitutional law. It would be saying that the vote of every person who voted for any candidate for any office at such election, and did not vote on the suffrage question, should be a vote against the extension of suffrage.[3] | ” |
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Question 2 was as follows:
| “ | All male citizens of the African blood, possessing the qualifications required by the first Section of the Article on 'Suffrage and the Elective Franchise,' shall have the right to vote for all officers, and be eligible to all offices that now are or hereafter may be elective by the people after the adoption of this Constitution. [ ] Adopt [ ] Reject | ” |
Full Text
The full text of this measure is available here.
Path to the ballot
The referendum was placed on the ballot by the constitutional convention that met in 1846.[4]
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ The Wisconsin Court System, "Famous Cases of the Wisconsin Supreme Court: Gillespie v. Palmer and others 28 Wis. 544 (1866)"
- ↑ Wisconsin Historical Society, The Wisconsin Supreme Court reaffirms black voting rights, 1866: Gillespie vs. Palmer and others
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Wisconsin Historical Society, "Rejected Constitution of the State of Wisconsin, 1846," accessed August 6, 2024
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